A weekly snapshot of Taiwan business news stories brought to you by CommonWealth and AmCham Taiwan’s TOPICS Long-stalled TIFA Talks Resume in Late June The 11th Taiwan-US Trade & Investment Framework Agreements (TIFA) council meeting was convened virtually on June 30. It was the first such meeting to be held in nearly five years, and…
The numbering system used on foreign nationals’ alien resident certificates (ARCs) changed in January to match that of Taiwanese citizens’ IDs, removing a longstanding hindrance to carrying out everyday activities such as online banking, ticket booking, and registration for medical appointments. Before the change was made, whether an ARC number could be entered successfully online…
The revised cosmetics law shows promise, but implementation issues remain. Of the eight issues raised the previous year that AmCham Taipei’s 2019 Taiwan White Paper deemed to have been fully resolved, half related to a single industry – cosmetics: Clarifying the definition of cosmetics under the law to avoid creating technical barriers to trade. Clearly…
Smoking rates are declining, but smuggled untaxed cigarettes remain a major problem. Draft amendments to Taiwan’s Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act, which passed their first reading in the Legislative Yuan in 2017 but have not yet proceeded further in the legislative process, have received a mixed reception from various interest groups. In addition to the Tobacco…
Current regulations have the effect of discouraging imports. Taiwan last year imported US$27.6 million worth of organic foods and beverages, making it one of the largest markets in that category in the region. Despite what is considered to be strong market potential, however, import growth is expected to slow in the years ahead due to…
A “member-choice” system is due to get a two-year trial. Taiwan has historically been conservative in its approach to pensions, preferring to assure its citizens a guaranteed if modest return. But as AmCham Taipei has long argued in its annual Taiwan White Paper, that approach is not necessarily in the best interest of all investors….
The recent incident of large numbers of eggs contaminated by pesticide use is but the most recent of a series of food scandals in recent years that have shaken consumer confidence. The government has instituted a number of regulatory reforms in an effort to deal with the issue, but it remains uncertain whether the current…
The proposed new legislation would make tax and other incentives available to international talent. To remedy the serious brain drain in Taiwan and counter aggressive talent poaching by neighboring countries, the government has proposed legislation to help attract and retain foreign white-collar workers. The main provisions would relax current restrictions on the hiring of…
A major driver of the Taiwan economy, the retail industry has gained momentum from technological development, rising disposable income, and the entrance of international players. In the newly published 2017 Taiwan White Paper, the Retail Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei recommends practical steps for the government to take to improve the…
TFDA shares its views on how the prospective new statute will be implemented. For the past several years, the Taiwan government has been working on revisions to the Statute for Control of Cosmetics Hygiene (the Cosmetics Act for short) to bring it up to date with current market approaches to protecting consumer interests. With the…
